Tennessee Car Insurance

Drivers in Memphis pay as much as 50 percent more for car insurance than their fellow Tennesseans. Location has a lot to do with your car insurance rates -- we've got every city and town in Tennessee mapped out below -- but so does the insurance company and car insurance discounts you find. The cheapest carrier in any ZIP code usually charges hundreds of dollars less than the most expensive.

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What you need to know about car insurance in Tennessee

Penny Gusner CarInsurance.com Consumer Analyst

Tennessee Car Insurance Laws

Tennessee's minimum car liability insurance requirements are about average. Drivers who have few assets may be adequately insured if they are at-fault in an accident. But homeowners and those with substantial savings should consider higher limits -- $100,000 per person bodily injury ($300,000 per accident) and $50,000 property damage are considered adequate for a typical family.

Uninsured motorist coverage is not required, but Tennessee has one of the highest rates of uninsured drivers in the country, according to the Insurance Research Council. If you are hit by an uninsured motorist, you would have to pay your own hospital bills unless you have health coverage of your own. And you would have to repair your own car unless you have bought collision coverage.

Dropouts don't drive: Schools must notify the state when students 15 or older drop out, which automatically suspends the teen's driving privileges until age 18.

Got some ID? Tennessee lets drivers who stop driving apply for an identification-only license, useful for boarding planes and voting.

Uninsured motorist penalties for Tennessee: If you are caught driving without insurance in Tennessee, you may be fined up to $100 and have your license and registration suspended.

SR-22 requirements: If you need to carry an SR-22 in Tennessee, you must do so for three years. If you don't renew it at least 15 days before the expiration date, your insurer will notify the state, which may then suspend your license until you reinstate the insurance.

Driver's license points: In Tennessee, driver's license points stay on your driving record and affect insurance rates for 24 months. Drivers who accumulate 12 or more points on their Tennessee driving record within any 12-month period are sent a notice of proposed suspension and given an opportunity to attend an administrative hearing. If they fail to request a hearing, their driving privileges are suspended for a period of six or 12 months. Teens are penalized more harshly for driver's license points in Tennessee.

Electronic proof of insurance: Tennessee is one of 31 states that allow drivers to show proof of insurance on a smartphone during a traffic stop.